With 126 players getting paid, we're on the direct bubble of the Grand Prix UK Main Event here on Day 2e.
Which player will not survive the cruellest of eliminations?
On a break from taking part in the £100+£15 entry £50,000 Guaranteed Side Event, partypoker Live President John Duthie took time away from the felt to outline what the Grand Prix is part of and how much fun bringing smiles back to the faces of poker players has been.
The money bubble for Day 2E has just burst!
Karen Arthur shoved her last 178,000 from middle position, picking up a call from Mark Elliott two to her left. The rest of the table folded, and we awaited the other hands in progress to conclude before revealing the hole cards.
Eventually, it was revealed that we were flipping, Karen Arthur's 
against Elliott's 
. It was as good as over straight away, with Elliott nailing top set on a 
flop. The 
turn confirmed that it was curtains for Karen, with the river 
taunting her as she stood up to walk away empty-handed.
"They call me Aero, because I bubble so often!"
Tournament director Ryan Brodsky called her back, as it was revealed that she may yet get paid: another all-in was in progress over on table 61.
We rushed over to see that Rebecca Molyneux's 
was in rough shape versus on a 
flop. There were no running aces for Molyneux, so she and Karen Arthur will chop up the 126th £400 payout for £200 each!
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
Busted | |
|
|
Busted |
Level: 22
Blinds: 12,000/24,000
Ante: 3,000
Gary Broadhurst is our second player to knock someone out with quads in as many hands!
Broadhurst raised to 50,000 UTG+1, with action folding all the way to Tom White in the big blind, who moved all-in for his last 274,000. Broadhurst called and White revealed his 
, which had Broadhurst's 
in bad shape. That was, until dealer Alex revealed the 
flop. The 
turn didn't alter proceedings, with the river adding insult to White's injury, while adding a big, beaming grin to Broadhurst's face.
Broadhurst aims to raise awareness for cystic fibrosis, with his "Organ Donors Live Twice" t-shirt from Sixty Five Apparel.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
2,625,000 | |
|
Busted |
Players are now taking their second 15-minute break of the day.
We're down to just 98 players, which means everyone from this point on is taking home at least £500 for their efforts. The average stack sits currently at 765,000, which represents 25.5 big blinds, with eight levels left to play.
Level: 23
Blinds: 15,000/30,000
Ante: 3,000
Matthew Baker has been enjoying himself since he sat down on Day 2e, and for good reason - he already has another stack in the bank for Day 2f later on when it kicks off at 9pm online.
"It's going really well today," he told us. "I lost with queens to kings in the first hand after the break, but I've come back since and hit a flush when all-in with 
on the flop."
Having begun the day on 880,000 in this flight, Baker has now risen up the leaderboard with 1.4 million and is really cooking.
"I can really go for a big stack in the online flight, that's the plan if I get through with this." he told us.
Baker looks ready to make Day 3 with one of the biggest stacks...can he possibly top current overall Day 3 chip leader Richard King with over 13 million? Stranger things have happened.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
1,400,000
300,000
|
300,000 |
Gary Werrett opened the cutoff to 60,000, with Łukasz Prejs calling from the small blind, before Phillip Hardcastle ripped 382,000 from the big. Werrett thought for a while before announcing, "I call; I know I'm behind but I call." Prejs, still in the hand, looks at Werrett with confusion in his brow before shrugging and folding.
Hardcastle's was in great shape versus Werrett's 
, but only until he was flopped dead on 
.
"Where do I go to get paid?" sighed Philip Hardcastle, as he finished in 91st for £500.
| Player | Chips | Progress |
|---|---|---|
|
|
1,540,000
1,540,000
|
1,540,000 |
|
|
Busted |
Level: 24
Blinds: 20,000/40,000
Ante: 4,000